As the US investigates Bitcoin, India says it has no plan to regulate the virtual currency yet

The Bitcoin industry is getting more eyeballs from authorities in various countries, who are seeking to understand the virtual currency’s role in their economy and form regulations to govern the whole ecosystem — as a testimony to the rise of Bitcoin’s popularity and the subsequent concerns that arise from using it.

Right now though, the Washington Post says that Congress is delving into a more complete investigation of the role that Bitcoin is playing in the economy, with the US Homeland Security Committee requesting for more details on the Obama administration’s current “policies, procedures, guidance or advisories” related to virtual currencies and information about “plans or strategies regarding virtual currencies.”

Besides Congress, the New York Department of Financial Services has also announced that it is opening an investigation into Bitcoin too — and subpoenaed 22 companies that were determined to play a significant role in the Bitcoin economy as it sought to conclude if and how these firms are subject to New York financial regulations.

Brock Pierce, a key player in the Bitcoin scene in the US, has told TNW that he thinks regulation is inevitable and necessary for Bitcoin to be sustained in the long run:

I am encouraged and support Congress’s actions as it has the potential to create a single, coherent federal regulatory framework versus a patchwork of state level and department level rules which will be complex and expensive to navigate, and potentially even be contradictory. Having a clear set of rules at the federal level would potentially balance governmental concerns, consumer protection and the interests of companies in the Bitcoin ecosystem.

According to the Economic Times, India-based Bitcoin users and entrepreneurs are also hoping for the Indian central bank to recognize it as a legitimate currency. It cites Benson Samuel, a Bangalore-based Bitcoin enthusiast who runs knowledge portal coinplace.tk, as saying:

Bitcoin is emerging in India and it would benefit the users if RBI could regulate it or take ownership of it.